Wednesday, August 28, 2013

28 August 1998 - Gus Puts One Over On Guus

On 28 August 1998, Chelsea won the UEFA Super Cup over Real Madrid with a late goal from midfielder Gus Poyet.

It was the first appearance in the Super Cup for both teams. Chelsea qualified for the match by lifting the previous season's Cup Winners' Cup (their second), while Real Madrid, playing their first competitive match under new manager Guus Hiddink, arrived after winning their seventh European Cup/Champions League title. The two teams met previously in the 1971 Cup Winners' Cup Final, which Chelsea won 2-1 in a replay.

Unlike most previous Super Cups which were played over two legs, the 1998 edition was a single match at the neutral location of Monaco's Stade Louis II. Playing in front of a crowd of just over 11,500, the teams remained locked at 0-0 deep into the second half, but Poyet, who had come on a substitute in the 63rd minute, finally gave Chelsea the lead with an 81st-minute goal. It was all the Londoners needed, as they held on for the 1-0 victory.